Early last summer a frustrated jogger was filmed tossing a
homeless man’s possessions into Lake Merritt. The “Jogger Joe” video went viral,
bringing to light two problems: one man with a quick temper and another squatting
in a public park. In the end, the jogger (his name isn’t really Joe) was
sentenced to five years’ probation and anger management classes. The homeless
man (his name’s Drew) became the focus of a crowd funding campaign which quickly
grew to $14,000. He was offered an apartment, a haircut, a prepaid phone and a
job at Home Depot. Drew turned it all down. The money was eventually given to
The Homeless Action Center and East Oakland Collective. Drew still lives on the
edge of the lake. If this story has a moral, it’s that homelessness isn’t a
problem you can solve by throwing out a sleeping bag and some clothes. It’s also
too complex a problem to solve by throwing money at it.
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